Let me protect you
by shimo hyozan
Summary: this is the cotinuation of my 1st fic, 'I'm faster and stronger now'. There's a new team in town that has IMPORTS! wanna know just what are those? READ ON!
1. prologue

Initial D- Let me protect you  
  
[Author's notes: hiya guys! So...here's the continuation of my other story, 'I'm stronger and faster now' I suggest you read that first...you know, to get the storyline...sorry to keep you guys waiting. I only finished up to chapter 8 for now...I can't um...'visualize' and imagine how the two brothers will race...(so sorry...that was a tiny spoiler...) ANYWAY...I stop my talking here so you can read! read! read! Oh yeah, please don't forget to review! Thanks so much for reading my story! And I'm sorry if my storytelling is a bit too rough or something......]  
  
Chapter01 –Prologue  
  
Usui mountain  
  
Where the legendary blue sil-eighty raced its fastest before.  
  
But now, it's not only the blue sil-eighty who can race its fastest here, rather the team it belongs to.  
  
The Kengai Racing team was now gathered here. This team is comprised of a number of the prefecture's most skilled and fastest racers. The list includes Takahashi Keisuke and his yellow FD, Takeshi Nakazato and his Black R32, Shingo and his red EG6, Usui's own Sato Mako and her blue sil- eighty and her former navigator, Sayuki with her black sil-eighty. Kenta with his orange S14, Akiyama Wataru with his white turbo-charged 86 and his sister, Kazumi with her own 86. Included here also is the legendary Fujiwara Takumi and his 86 A.K.A Akina's 86 and Kazama Yuki from Tokyo with her civic SIR A.K.A blue ice of Tokyo. The White comet of Akagi or Takahashi Ryousuke and his white FC heads this team.  
  
They had finished tackling Myogi some weeks ago so now, Usui is their next target. During the usual lecture Ryousuke delivers, Takumi edged towards Keisuke. "hey there" "Takumi" Keisuke nodded at him "I have a question" "what is it?" "Where does Yuki-chan stay?" "with us" "where? In your brother's room?" Takumi asked "before" "okay........." Takumi said slowly "Fujiwara, please use your common sense! They don't sleep together! Though they did before.........but now, she sleeps in the empty room beside mine" Takumi looked at him, aghast and said "Keisuke, I never would've thought that you and—"  
"I MOST CERTAINLY DO NOT DO WHAT YOU'RE THINKING, FUJIWARA!!!" Keisuke fumed.  
"Keisuke-san........." Ryousuke spoke through the crowd "......would you like to share to the whole team what you and Takumi are talking about? It seems interesting, I presume"  
"ah! Ah! It's nothing Aniki! We were just teasing each other! Nothing interesting happening here!!!" and he smiled sheepishly at his older brother.  
"right then, as I was saying........." Ryousuke continued on with his lecture.  
"I never gonna talk to you anymore" Keisuke said, crossing his arms and stepping away from Takumi.  
"sorry Keisuke" Takumi said understandingly  
"just don't do that ever again"  
"okay, I promise. What do you want me to do now?"  
"listen to my brother and shut up while he's lecturing"  
"alright then" Takumi said  
  
After the lecture, it was finally time to head on down.  
"Well, let's go now. Let's see.........um......Mako, you lead, Sayuki, sit  
beside your partner"  
"WHAT?" Sayuki exclaimed. "I won't drive? But Ryousuke!!!" she rambled "I want to see how both of you drive your own home course with each other's help and you will not drive......yet. You'll drive later" "okay then, that sounds fair" Sayuki said. "we'll use the 'test' play......you know, the one we used in Myogi before" He explained, seeing the clueless looks on his team member's faces. "ah........." the team said simultaneously "but since it's a new course, I'll jumble you people up. So Mako goes first. Wataru follows, then Kenta, Nakazato, Keisuke, Kazumi, Shingo, Takumi then Yuki's last then I'll be at the end as usual." "okay" the team answered "then let's go! Yuki-chan, come here for a second, please" Yuki approached him  
"this is how we do this. All you have to do is keep your concentration. Try to hold me in my spot, don't let me pass. And also try to put some pressure on Takumi so if he loses his concentration, you may overtake him. You got that?"  
"of course, Ryousuke-kun"  
"alright. So let's have fun, shall we?"  
"yes, I'll like that" she said as she proceeded to her car.  
'she fits perfectly in the team' Ryousuke thought as he went in his FC and signaled the team to get started. 


	2. news about a new team

Initial D- Let me protect you  
  
Chapter02 –news about a new team  
  
The next day  
  
Takumi stopped by the gas station after his morning delivery. His best friend and former worker, Itsuki, had finally come home from his Family vacation. Takumi was glad to see him back, for he was gone for about a month now.  
"Takumi!!!" Itsuki called upon seeing the 86 park.  
"Itsuki, you're back" Takumi said as he got out  
"yeah, we arrived yesterday evening"  
"so, how was your vacation?"  
"terrible! There were no girls!!!!! But then, I remembered my motto: Street racers don't need a girl!!!"  
"hmph.........I don't know about that" Takumi chuckled, remembering Ryousuke and Yuki  
"huh? What do you mean???"  
"ah......... nothing, nothing!!!! Anyway, how're you been?" Takumi said, changing the topic  
"here, still a proud member of the Akina speedstars! Iketani-sempai told me you're already a member!"  
"yeah, I had to get a sticker to meet Ryousuke's......um......suggestion and I've been racing for the team, right? So, I guess Iketani-sempai recruited me anyways"  
"ah........." Itsuki said  
"actually, I also have another sticker. The official sticker of the Kengai Racing team"  
"really?!?!?!? I feel so envious!!!!"  
"well, at least you belong in a team already.........that reminds me, I just thought you wanted to know, Kazumi-chan is also part of the team"  
"ow? What car does she drive?"  
"also an 86. so there are a total of three 86's in the team"  
"three???? That's a lot for one team"  
"yeah" Just at that exact moment, a white 180 drove in and parked beside them.  
"Kenji-sempai" Takumi said  
"hey guess what?" Kenji said when he got out  
"what?" Itsuki said  
"there's a new team that's defeating every racer in the area"  
"really? Where are they now? What's their name?" Takumi said  
"Fiery hell they're called, but don't worry yet. They're still headed for Irohazaka"  
"isn't that the emperor's hometown?" Itsuki asked  
"yeah. But you know, I hope they beat them......the new team scares me" A split second after, Iketani stepped out of the station's office and approached the group.  
"hey"  
"Iketani-sempai" they said in chorus  
"have you heard about the new team?" Kenji pressed on  
"yes. Fiery hell, am I correct?" Iketani said All of them nodded  
"they're new, I suppose. Because the cars in their team are all imports"  
"really? What cars?" Itsuki asked  
"the new evo's 7 and 8"  
"from what I read in a magazine, those cars are REALLY powerful" Kenji added  
"I sure hope the emperor team beats them. If not, we'll have to beat them" Takumi said  
"what, us? No way!" Itsuki said  
"if we can't beat them, then the Kengai Racing team shall do it. We've been improving dramatically, every single one of us"  
"that's good to hear" Iketani said  
"yeah. So, there's how many are you already?" Kenji asked  
"um......" then he started ticking off his fingers one by one. "11"  
"eleven? I thought there were only 8 of you! Who're the others?"  
"one is an old friend of Ryousuke. I don't know if you guys know her, though"  
"her???" his friends said together  
"her name's Kazama Yuki A.K.A blue ice of Tokyo"  
"YOU HAVE THE 'BLUE ICE' IN YOUR TEAM????" they all bellowed at Takumi  
"yeah"  
"amazing........." their voices trailed off  
"in addition to that, Sayuki and Kazumi-chan are also part of the team" They paid no attention to what Takumi had spoken of. They remained unmoving, staring blankly at space.  
"whatever" Takumi said, walking away from them. 


	3. permission?

Initial D- Let me protect you  
  
Chapter03–permission?  
  
3 days after  
  
Ryousuke was overseeing practices of the team at the Peak of Usui Mountain when his cell phone rang.  
"hello" Ryousuke said upon taking the call  
"Ryousuke?" the caller said  
"yeah, this is me. Who's this?"  
"Sudou Kyouychi"  
"ah.........what may I do for you, Kyouychi?"  
"I just called to inform you, there's a new team in town"  
"a new team?"  
"yeah. They call themselves 'Fiery hell' and they're really fast. They might be heading your way soon."  
"oh......did they battle you?"  
"yes and.........I, rather, we lost"  
"your whole team lost? I don't believe that"  
"oh but you have to. The cars they drive are all imports"  
"what cars?"  
"the latest models of the lanevo's, evo's 7 and 8"  
"really? Their group must be fresh, brand new. Were they young?"  
"uh......yeah. Their age level is around yours and Keisuke's"  
"as I thought. They are young"  
"speak for yourself. They are stubborn and bratty kids if you ask me, too proud of the cars they have"  
"but look at the situation properly. If you had the same cars as they do, won't you act the same?"  
"yeah. But it's not like that Ryousuke! And don't laugh! This isn't a laughing matter!" Kyouychi said, upon hearing Ryousuke chuckle a bit.  
"alright, alright. Don't worry okay? My team won't lie back during a battle. To tell you the truth, they've been improving greatly"  
"really? That's good news"  
"yeah. And I'm glad they do learn. Teaching them everyday is pretty exhausting"  
"well, at least they improve and use their knowledge properly"  
"say, why don't you drop by here sometime? But I'll have to schedule that. We move throughout hometowns almost every other week"  
"wow! Then the team must be really that good, for you to be practicing on every hometown there"  
"yeah. Anyway, I'll talk to you later, they're back from their run here"  
"where you now?"  
"Usui"  
"ah, alright. Then bye!"  
  
"bye! Thanks for telling me about Fiery hell"  
"no problem" then he hung up The team arrived shortly, parking their cars side by side. They got out, some with a relieved look on their faces.  
"was that a good run? I can see that most of you got tired of the mountain" Ryousuke said, smiling  
"it was a BIT tiring" Nakazato said, panting a bit  
"then I guess we'll have to extend our practices here" The whole team groaned  
"you want to improve right? Then we shall tackle every home course around here to be fully equipped during a battle..........which reminds me" he trailed off.  
"what?" Wataru asked  
"Kyouychi called while all of you were driving and he told me some news about a new team"  
"a new team?" Yuki said cluelessly  
"yes. A new one. They call themselves 'Fiery hell' and Kyouychi reckons that they'll be heading our way soon" Murmurs were heard 'Fiery hell? That sounds so familiar.........' Takumi thought to himself Then Ryousuke spoke once more  
"that is why I'm informing you, might as well inform the team each of you belonged to before, to not accept the challenge......"  
"but why Aniki?" Keisuke cut him off  
"......for WE will beat them, OUR team will beat them. It's not that I don't believe in your former team member's skills, but rather, I'm confident that your skills are good enough already"  
"really? Amazing!" Kazumi exclaimed  
"yeah. So, that'll be all. Practices are over for today." Ryousuke said as he turned to leave  
"uh.........Ryousuke?" someone called him from behind He turned around and was faced by Usui's angels, Mako and Sayuki, accompanied by Kazumi and Yuki, the four girls of his team.  
"yes? What may I do for you, ladies?" he said, smiling at them Mako elbowed Sayuki, who answered, "alright, alright, I'll do it." to her friend. She then turned to Ryousuke, who stood there, oblivious of their odd behavior.  
"right, uh.........so, you see, its Friday, and there's a girls nite out at one of the restaurants in Akina so we came to ask if we could........."  
"......if we could take Yuki-chan with us? Mako continued  
"I mean, if it's okay with you........." Sayuki added hastily  
"we truly understand if you said—"  
"it's okay with me" Ryousuke cut them off  
"it's okay with you?" Mako said, thunderstruck  
"are you sure?" Sayuki asked  
"hey, I already gave you my answer. Do you want me to reconsider?"  
"no! no! it's fine, thank you!" Kazumi said  
"I have just one condition" Ryousuke added  
"anything at all" Mako said, grinning  
"just keep an eye on her, alright? I might strip you girls out if anything happened"  
"sure, sure that's fine......no! it's not fine that you strip us off! Your condition is good"  
"well then have fun!" Ryousuke bid them goodbye  
"Thank you, Ryousuke-kun" Yuki said as she approached him and planted a kiss on his right cheek. "bye!" Yuki said, waving a hand at him as she ran after her companions. He waved back then got in his FC and drove home. 


	4. girl's nite out

Initial D- Let me protect you  
  
Chapter04–girl's nite out  
  
Upon parking at the parking lot provided for the restaurant, the four girls got out. They had all agreed to bring Sayuki's sil-eighty because Yuki's car is a bit famous and so is Mako's, and Kazumi wanted to conserve on gas leaving Sayuki's the only free car for them to use.  
  
They stepped in the restaurant and at once, a lot of heads snapped towards their direction. There were a few guys hanging around and looking at them with great interest. Yuki inched nearer towards Sayuki and whispered, "I thought you said this was a girl's nite out?"  
"I did, but what I meant by that is that there will be MORE girls hanging around here than guys." She said as she led them to a table.  
"oh.........alright"  
"besides, what are you worrying about?"  
"nothing" Yuki said  
"then that's fine, okay? Don't worry, there's three of us to protect you anyways"  
"okay then" Yuki said, smiling at her  
"now that's settled, let's order"  
  
After minutes of ordering then waiting for their order, they just talked to each other, mostly about the lessons with occasional teasing of Yuki, who blushed a little. Kazumi was looking out at the window, since they were sitting beside one then she said, "hey, do you recognize those cars?" All of them looked out and saw the cars, which parked in front of the restaurant. Nobody spoke, then  
"yeah, I think I've seen those kinds before" Yuki commented They all stared at her  
"I think I've seen those cars in America. The new evo's 7and 8"  
"evo?" Kazumi said with no clue  
"a lanevo, Kazumi. Like the one's the emperor team uses" Mako explained  
"oh.........alight" Kazumi said  
"well, I haven't seen THOSE guys before" Sayuki said, pointing outside. Guys their age stepped out of the cars and grouped together, talking among themselves. They then went in the restaurant they were in and approached a table a few meters away from them.  
"one thing for sure, they're a lot" Mako said  
"yeah" Yuki said, looking towards their direction  
  
At long last, their orders finally came. They continued on their discussion when Mako suddenly said, "we have a situation" Her friends all looked at her. She shook her head and bent forward. The others did the same.  
"one of the guys pointed at you, Yuki" Mako whispered  
"really?" Yuki said in a monotone  
"is that all you can say?" Sayuki said "aren't you excited?"  
"no. a bit worried though" Yuki said  
"why?" Kazumi asked  
"oh.........I get it. Ryousuke?" Mako questioned Yuki, who nodded in return  
"it's okay, all you have to do is tell him that you're already seeing someone" she said  
"yeah" Sayuki added  
"I guess so.........anyways, it's true" Yuki said, sipping her drink  
"ookaaay........." Mako said slowly "he's heading this way now"  
"act normal" Sayuki said quickly so they engaged in another conversation until  
"hi, I'm sorry if I'm mistaken, could one of you girls know or perhaps be Kazama Yuki?" the guy said. Mako, Sayuki and Kazumi all pointed at Yuki, their eyes wide with shock. He was extremely handsome in close-up. Yuki looked at them with her brows furrowed then she lifted her gaze at the guy and smiled at him, saying, "yeah, it's me" then she was abruptly cut off at the sight of the guy, he seemed familiar.  
  
"Minoko?"  
  
"Yuki?" 


	5. an old friend

Initial D- Let me protect you 

**author's note: **a friendly reminder from me! I own Dakada Minoko, okay? He's a product of my imagination…I also own Goneida Minou, who'll be appearing later on…that's all…enjoy!

Chapter05–an old friend

They both stared at each other then the guy was the first one to free himself from the trance

"Yuki-chan! I never would've thought that I'd be seeing you again, and of all places, at Akina"

Facing a man of about 23,with spiky brown hair, eyes of the same shade and a handsome face, The girl who was called greeted him.

"hello, Dakada Minoko. I also thought the same. Well, what a coincidence. So, what brings you to this side of town?" Yuki said in a serious tone, yet she was still smiling

"I'm now part of a racing team named Fiery hell and our team is around here to defeat every racer here" he said proudly

"oh…really now?"

"how about you?" Minoko asked eagerly, reaching for her hand and stroking it gently.

"I'm hanging around with some friends, which reminds me…I have to introduce you to them. This is Mako, Sayuki and Kazumi" she pointed at each

They remained motionless so Yuki kicked them each from under the table. They snapped back to reality and smiled at him, saying

"hi"

"hello"

"nice to meet you"

"well, well, nice to meet you too, ladies" Minoko said, beaming at them. "say, why don't you girls join us? The more, the merrier!" he continued on

"oh, gee, that sounds like fun but we have to take ol' Kazumi home. Her brother set a curfew for her, isn't that right, Kazumi?" she said, facing Kazumi and raising both of her eyebrows at her.

"ah…you're right. Perhaps some other time." Kazumi said, nodding at her

"now, if you would excuse us, Minoko. We might as well be getting home now. It's really nice to see you again" she said, withdrawing her hand and standing up, smiling at him. She beckoned her companions to follow so they did.

"bye" the three girls said as they followed Yuki outside the doors, leaving Minoko standing alone by their table.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Sayuki approached Yuki "what was that all about?"

"yeah Yuki. You busted him. He was quite cute, you know" Mako said

"ah, let me explain to you people. You see, the reason Minoko knows me is because we were in college together and that was the time I was also friends with Ryousuke"

"hmph…friends" Sayuki commented

"anyway…" Yuki said, ignoring Sayuki's comment "…he sort of tried to date me but every time he would, I'll just turn him down. His reputation and attitude is the reason why I do this. even though he's handsome and all, he's also arrogant and bratty. He also had a record for breaking a lot of school rules. To sum it up, he's handsome outside yet VERY nasty inside. I never liked that kind of guy" Yuki concluded, getting in the car.

"oh, I see why now" Sayuki said, starting the engine

"he's a bad boy. And I bet all his friends are all the same. You heard him talk, right? He was boasting about his car and being a street racer"

"hey that reminds me, he said 'Fiery hell' right?" Mako asked

Yuki nodded

"could he be the leader of 'Fiery hell' ,the group Ryousuke was talking about?"

"yeah, that's possible"

"does Ryousuke know him?" Sayuki said

"I don't think so. Perhaps by face and reputation, though" then she added "why?"

"I was just wondering if they both battled together, would they just battle or place a bet on it"

"a bet?"

"yeah. Think of it, they _both_ love you, right? Could they perhaps…bet on you?"

"bet on me? What kind of a crazy idea is that?" Yuki said

"but, think of the possibilities"

"ah! I don't even want to think of him! It makes me sick!" Yuki said, sticking out her tongue. "can we change subject, please?"

So they talked about, what else? Their lessons. They taught Kazumi in drifting, and also gave her tips. They headed for Akina's peak, for all their cars were parked.

"well, then. Thanks for bringing me out, guys." Yuki said as she approached her car and unlocked it.

"it was really fun, maybe we should do it again?" Mako said

"yeah, but please, somewhere else" Yuki said, remembering who she just saw

"alright. Bye then!" Sayuki said.

They bid each other good-bye then went down together. Mako led, followed by Sayuki, Kazumi then Yuki.

'would they bet on me? I don't know' Yuki thought as she drifted alongside Kazumi. 'perhaps Minoko will be the one to lay out the bet but will Ryousuke take a shot on it?'

'If ever that will happen, I sure HOPE that Ryousuke wins, otherwise I'd be stuck with that sick, mean ass, bad boy for life…yuck!!!' she shifted to third gear as she drifted once more

'he even tried to be nice to me again! By holding my hand! I remembered the time before where he even attempted to kiss me! Disgusting!!!' she pelted after Kazumi at the straight to vent out her frustration. She then zoomed of towards Akagi the moment they reached the bottom.


	6. an unaccepted challenge

Initial D- Let me protect you  
  
Chapter06–an unaccepted challenge  
  
the next day  
  
Itsuki was talking with Iketani at the gas station when suddenly, a dark blue evo 7 interrupted them.  
"welcome!" Iketani said as the car stopped in front of them.  
"high octane, fill it up" the driver said  
"yes sir!" Iketani answered as he started filling up the car. Itsuki was eyeing the car with great admiration when he caught sight of a sticker. It read 'Fiery hell'. He stopped as his eyes widened 'Fiery hell?!?!?!?' he thought  
"you guys must be locals around here because I want to ask something" the driver said  
"yes sir, we are" Iketani said  
"good. I wanted to ask what team is the fastest around here?"  
"oh. actually sir, my team claims to be the fastest around here"  
"really? Then may I propose a battle with your fastest driver?" Iketani thought first, then he remembered  
"I'm sorry sir, but we were informed not to accept your challenge"  
"why? Are you scared?" the driver loathed  
"it's not that sir, for our fastest driver is also part of the fastest team in this prefecture. So we were informed not to accept your challenge for they will accept it"  
"so I still have to propose the challenge to them?"  
"yes sir" Iketani answered as he pulled the hose out  
"okay. Where may I find this team then?" he said as he paid Iketani  
"uh, maybe I'll just coordinate with them because they change home courses, for practice"  
"alright then"  
"how does the peak of Mount Akina sound? At around 10:00pm?"  
"sounds good, anyway thanks. One more thing, what is the name of this team?"  
"The Kengai Racing team" prompted Iketani  
"okay. Thank you once again" he concluded as he zoomed off. Itsuki still remained stunned as the car drove off. Iketani waved his hand in front of his companion's face.  
"Itsuki, ITSUKI!"  
"eh?" then he snapped back to reality  
"what's wrong again?" Iketani asked  
"that team! Fiery hell! Just challenged..."  
"they will challenge later, for the meantime, I have to see Takumi. You can handle here alone, right?"  
"yeah"  
"don't do anything stupid, alright? Think first!" he said, remembering Itsuki's accidental acceptation of a battle before. "I'll be back later, bye!" he said as he proceeded to his car and drove off towards the local moving company's place, where Takumi works.  
  
Upon reaching the place, he found Takumi stepping out of the moving truck. He quickly approached him and said  
"Takumi, I have to tell you something"  
"Sempai, what're you doing here?"  
"didn't you hear me? Anyway, do you have any means of contacting Ryousuke? The leader of Fiery hell, I think, he came to the station just a while ago and he wants to challenge you guys. I told him to meet the team at Akina's peak at 10:00pm. Will you be able to make it?"  
"I guess so. Anyways, thank you so much sempai, but I really have to go now. See you later!" Takumi said as he walked inside the building. Iketani bid him also goodbye and he drove back to the gas station.  
  
later  
Takumi's shift had already ended so he quickly proceeded to his car and got the walkie-talkie in the glove compartment. 'I have to inform Ryousuke first' so he searched for Ryousuke's transmission and spoke, saying,  
"Ryousuke, you there? it's me, Takumi"  
"Fujiwara? Hello there"  
"listen. This is a pretty long story. The group you've been talking about......"  
"Fiery hell?" Ryousuke cut him off  
"yes. They, actually, only one person, I guess their leader, went to the gas station some hours ago so Iketani talked to them. They wanted to challenge us, since you told me to tell them not to accept their challenge. Anyway, Iketani told me to tell you, actually the whole team, to meet at Akina's peak to meet them"  
"okay, I see. What time would that be?"  
"10:00pm"  
"alright, I'll tell Keisuke and Yuki. Can you inform the others?"  
"yeah, sure"  
"okay, thank you. I'll see you later then"  
"okay" Takumi said then he searched for all the transmissions of his other team members. When he got them already, he spoke  
"um.........please listen up." Then he paused for a while "There will be an emergency meeting at Akina's peak at 10:00pm. I repeat, an emergency meeting at Akina's peak at 10:00pm. Actually, go there at 9:30 to be sure. Thank you, that will be all" he concluded, tossing the walkie-talkie at the passenger's seat beside him. "here I go, mount Akina" he said, starting the engine and zooming off to the ever famous Akina's peak. 


	7. the given challenge

Initial D- Let me protect you  
  
Chapter07–the given challenge  
  
At 9:50pm, the Kengai Racing team was already complete. Ryousuke was patiently waiting for the new team to arrive. Questions were buzzing about here and there, all the same  
  
"what's the emergency about?"  
  
Since Takumi and Ryousuke were the one's who really knew, the whole team approached Takumi, blasting questions at him until Takumi started explaining.  
  
"it's simple. The team Fiery hell will meet us here to make the challenge"  
"already?" Wataru said, astonished  
"yeah"  
  
The guys started discussing about the team while the girls approached Yuki.  
  
"Yuki, you don't look too good" Sayuki said  
"what's wrong?" Kazumi asked  
"I feel so nervous.........knowing Minoko, he might really bet on me. It's just the matter if Ryousuke will bite on the offer"  
"oh dear, it's okay Yuki. Don't think about it already" Mako said  
"just hope he won't do that" Sayuki prompted  
"yeah, I hope" Yuki said then she turned her attention towards the road. All the others did the same then someone muttered out from the crowd of guys "they're here". It was Takumi. He had really acquired Ryousuke's ability to identify cars.  
'an unfamiliar engine sound?' Ryousuke thought. 'The imports Kyouychi informed me are powerful'  
  
Finally, the cars came into view, which was headed by a dark blue evo 7. They parked neatly in a line then they got out and approached the crowd in front of them. Their leader, which was in front, spoke  
"we're the Fiery hell racing team and I'm Dakada Minoko. Who is your leader?" Ryousuke stepped forward and said. "I am. My name is Takahashi Ryousuke and we are the Kengai Racing team"  
"Takahashi Ryousuke? From the famous Takahashi brothers of Akagi?"  
"yeah"  
"wow. I never thought I'd be battling you someday." Then his eyes wandered throughout the team. "all guys?"  
"no. there are also a few ladies" Minoko's eyes searched for the ladies until he caught sight of Kazumi. 'that girl looks familiar' then he looked at Sayuki then Mako until his gaze fell on Yuki, who looked away.  
"Yuki-chan!" he called out. "I never knew you raced" Ryousuke looked at Minoko then to Yuki. He gestured her to come forward so she squeezed through the crowd and stood beside him.  
"I have a question Ryousuke. Did you go to Sukomo University for college?"  
"yes, why?"  
"then you must remember me. I was also in the same year level as you and Yuki" Ryousuke thought for a while then "ah, yes. Dakada Minoko. I remember you"  
"looks like this is a reunion, huh? You know what, I'm surprised that you, Yuki, would be racing then all of a sudden, you already are plus, you belong to Ryousuke's team" Minoko said  
"it looks like you don't know much of the racing world, Minoko. Yuki here is also blue ice of Tokyo that's why I recruited her"  
"oh, I see. Anyway, let's skip this discussion. We aren't here to reminisce, rather, to challenge you. Let's see, huh? What?........." he said as a hand on his shoulder interrupted him so he turned to his team member while someone whispered to him something. A smile curled his lips then he said to his team "I like that" he turned around to face Ryousuke once more.  
"okay, so here's the challenge. 3 battles one on one. You pick your three best drivers and I'll do the same. wait, wait ,wait......" He said, seeing Ryousuke turning to his team. "I'm not done yet. Shall we make this battle interesting? Let's bet on it" he said with a smirk Mako, Sayuki and Kazumi's eyes widened. They all had a strong feeling on what was next. They looked at each other then looked at Yuki, who in return, glanced at them with a very worried face.  
"a bet? What kind?" Ryousuke said questionable tone  
"are you willing to bet......" he glanced at Yuki "......on Yuki?" he said, smirk widening. The whole Kengai Racing team gasped in shock. Yuki looked at Ryousuke with a very worried look on her face. She took his hand in her own and squeezed it. 'she's so nervous' Ryousuke thought.  
"you can't do this!" he fumed at Minoko  
"oh I can't do this, can I? I'm making the challenge so might as well follow MY conditions, right? Or else you can walk away from my offer and have no battle at all" he said, raising his eyebrows at Ryousuke. Ryousuke looked at Yuki seriously. Then he said "what are your conditions?"  
"simple. Whichever team wins 2-out-of-3 gets her. Getting her will mean Yuki staying permanently in that winning team, whether she likes it or not" he said, smirk not fading.  
"wait for a moment" Ryousuke said as he turned to his team and leaned forward to them. The team also did the same.  
"so, Aniki. Are you going to do it?" Keisuke said seriously.  
"I want to do it for the goddamn sake of beating him. I want to teach this punk a lesson and I believe in you guys. I know that whoever I pick, will be able to beat their team"  
"therefore.........?" Nakazato said  
"we'll race" His team members gave out another gasp of shock. Kenta went forward and said "are you sure, Ryousuke?"  
"100% sure. We will not be provoked by these......kids who think they're good. For all I know, they've just started their racing career. Compared to us, we have one essential thing and that is......"  
"......experience?" Takumi cut him off with a tone of uncertainty heard  
"that's correct, Fujiwara" Ryousuke said, nodding at him. "anyway, so we'll race against them. We also can't back out, it will hurt our reputation and why will we back out anyways?"  
"because it's me?" Yuki said in a small voice  
"Yuki-chan, don't you see it? Another reason why I'm not backing out is it's because of you. I won't let him take you away from me......us, I mean" he said hastily, smiling at Yuki. "you're very important and valuable to me and us" Yuki could only smile at him.  
"what do you say? Shall we go for it?" Ryousuke said  
"yes!" the team answered  
"alright then" he said as he turned to Minoko. "we accept the challenge"  
"okay good. Now it's your turn. I give you the choice of courses for all three rounds"  
"wait" he said then he thought hard. "okay. First will be at......Myogi" Both Nakazato and Shingo's eyes widened.  
"second will be here at Akina" he dropped his gaze at the floor beneath him.  
"and third......" he continued, looking at Minoko straight in the eye "......will be at my home course, Akagi" he said with determination. Tension filled the air as the cool evening breeze swept across them.  
"so, that's Myogi, Akina and Akagi, am I correct?"  
"yes"  
"okay, what time and when?"  
"all the three battles will be downhill. 10:00pm then the first battle will start next Saturday. The next Saturday will be the second then the last one, the Saturday after the next."  
"every other Saturday then at 10:00pm at the peak?"  
"yeah"  
"alright. Then we'll see you next Saturday at Myogi. Prepare to be defeated" he said as he turned to leave  
"you first" Ryousuke answered back as he watched them get into their cars. Revving up their engines, they zoomed off. 


	8. practice equals potential

Initial D- Let me protect you  
  
Chapter08–practice equals potential  
  
"Ryousuke, who are you picking?" Wataru said as the last car of the opposing team was out of sight.  
"okay. I'm going to make this clear. I picked the people out of the team because I have confidence and trust in them. They have the most developed skills among us. So anyway. The first one will be........." he said, looking around the team ".........Keisuke-san" he continued, looking at his younger brother. Keisuke, in return, nearly fainted. He staggered a little and before he could say anything in protest, his brother held out a hand to silence him "I'll let you complain later." He said, looking at him. He then continued "Next, for Akina will be Takumi and for Akagi will be me" The people who weren't called gave out a sigh of relief.  
  
A moment of silence passed before "okay Keisuke, you can complain now"  
"ANIKI! Why the heck did you pick me???" Keisuke exclaimed  
"as I said, Keisuke-san, I have confidence and trust in you. And I've been observing you when we were practicing in Myogi. You can already keep up with Takumi, which means you have improved. You can now control your FD, almost the same as I do with my FC. You see, Keisuke, you are already giving off an aura."  
"really, Ryousuke?" Nakazato said in disbelief  
"oh yes. That is why I picked Keisuke. And your aura gets stronger as we change courses" he told his younger brother. Keisuke just blinked at him.  
"and I picked Takumi of course, because you are the downhill specialist at Akina. Not one car ever won over you here, not even me and I don't think those show offs will ever do" he told Takumi, who nodded back.  
"so there. that's why. Oh, and I picked myself for I also want to take part in this little heat......I have also loathed Minoko before so now, it's payback time"  
"sounds reasonable" Kenta said  
"better you guys than us" Nakazato said. The team nodded their heads in approval.  
"why? You don't believe in yourselves? We all have the potential to beat them, it's just the matter of who has the bigger potential"  
"alright" Kenta said  
"now that's done, shall we be getting home? It's getting pretty late anyways. Practices will still be held on Usui but on Thursday and Friday, we will go back to Myogi. Keisuke need a little bit more of preparation." So the team all headed for their respective cars and drove home.  
  
4 days later  
  
It was already Thursday and as Ryousuke said, practices were held in Myogi. A new type of play was put into action: Keisuke would be at the back, followed by his brother, of course. Ahead of him was the whole team. All he had to do was to get pass all of them before they hit the bottom. Little by little, he progressed in overtaking all of them. He even passed Takumi, who was positioned at the very front. They only retired when Keisuke got passed them 3 straight times.  
  
When they were done for the day, most of them didn't want to get out of their cars, for they were super exhausted. Ryousuke saw this so he announced  
"that was a pretty good run so as a treat, though Keisuke will be exempted" he said, looking at his brother "I won't require all of you to turn up tomorrow. It's your choice if you want to go here and watch Keisuke and I training here" The whole team was too tired to react at all.  
"anyway, that's done. You can all go home now" he said, heading downhill.  
"that was a bit harsh" Nakazato commented  
"yeah. But I'm happy about today. I finally got passed Fujiwara!" Keisuke said triumphantly  
"I congratulate you, Keisuke" Takumi replied  
"yeah. Good for you, Keisuke. Surely you won't lose to those suckers" Yuki added  
"well, I sure hope so, Yuki. We don't want to lose you in the team" Keisuke said  
"enough of this. I want to know who are coming tomorrow. I'm definitely going" Kenta butted in  
"me" Nakazato said  
"and me" Wataru answered  
"also me" Shingo said  
"I might be able to drop by" Takumi replied  
"how about you four girls?" Kenta asked  
"of course we'll go, right?" Mako said the remaining girls nodded  
"so we'll all see each other tomorrow again?"  
"looks like it" Shingo said  
"oh well. Makes no difference anyways" Keisuke concluded. "anyways, shall we go home now?" The team nodded at him and they all started going down. The whole mountain of Myogi was once again filled with engines sounds that echoed all night. 


	9. a battle between brothers

Initial D- Let me protect you 

**author's notes:** well… I'M BACK!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Anyway, to all the readers, I would like to apologize for the REALLY delayed update of this! I really, _really_ had a hard time doing this chappie! I couldn't properly express my thoughts down to this…but anyway! I would like to present to you a delayed story! So sorry for not updating this! I was getting really lazy and now, I'm busy with schoolwork, but deep inside, I told myself that I _had_ to finish this 'cause I already know the ending (evil grin) hehehe!!!! So, here it is! Enjoy! And…could you please drop ma a review? Pretty please?!?!?!?

Chapter09–a battle between brothers

the next day

"oh, you all came" Ryousuke said, astonished

"isn't it obvious?" Wataru said

"well, yeah"

"we're here to watch so have a good run!" Mako said

The two brothers looked at each other and said "right…" simultaneously. They broke off and started heading towards their cars. Ryousuke went in, however Keisuke just stood by his car, thinking.

An idea just hit him!

"Aniki" Keisuke called to his brother. He went to his brother's car and signaled him to get out.

"what is it, Keisuke-san?" Ryousuke said as he got out

"I have a…request" Keisuke said, a bit of uncertainty heard

The whole team noticed this so they approached the both of them.

"a request? What is it?" Ryousuke asked, puzzled

"I… I want to battle you. Right here, right now" he said with determination

"battle me?"

"yeah. I really want to test my skills. Since I got passed Takumi, I want to see if I'm good enough to battle you now. And you told me about my potential, I also want to see this for myself"

"are you sure?"

"yes"

"well then, alright. I also want to see how fast you really can get" Ryousuke said, smiling

"so, I can?" Keisuke said eagerly

"yeah, of course you can"

"YES!" Keisuke exclaimed, punching the air upward. "Well, let's get started!" he continued on as he got in his car

"who wants to countdown?" Ryousuke said to the crowd, smile not fading

No one moved. They were a startled on what was about to happen. A battle between the two best drivers of the Redsuns AND The Kengai Racing team was something that shocked them all.

"no one? I guess I'll have to appoint someone then…" he said, eyes wandering through the crowd. "why don't you try it, Yuki-chan?"

"me…?" Yuki said

"yeah. All you have to do is stand between the two cars and countdown. It's easy enough for anyone to do but I picked you since I don't think you've ever done this, am I correct?"

"yes" she said

"well then, come on here. We're about to start"

Yuki nodded at him then went forward to start the race. The FD and FC parked side by side at the starting point.

"um…" she looked around uncertainly and caught sight of Mako, Sayuki and Kazumi, who all smiled at her. Sayuki showed her hand, which was open.

Five fingers. A five.

Yuki got the hint and said clearly "5 seconds to start" as she raised a hand

The two cars revved up their engines.

"five"

"four"

"three"

"two"

"one"

"GO!"

And it started. They were both even at the start until they reached the corner. The FC took the lead.

"Ryousuke's driving is different now" Takumi said. The team looked at him. "He immediately took the lead, it's not like him"

"maybe he's using a different strategy for today" Nakazato suggested

"yes. Probably" Takumi answered

Meanwhile, inside the white FC, Ryousuke was just doing what Nakazato had said.

"yes. Let's see how you can get pass me. Do you have a strategy?" Ryousuke said upon glancing at his rear view mirror. "since you wanted a battle, here's how I shall battle you, to my fullest extent though, I will sometimes pull back a little. I wouldn't want to spoil all the fun" he smiled as he executed a drift down the corner.

The yellow FD was not too far behind. He drifted after his brother then accelerated, chasing the white FC in front.

"damn! My Aniki is so fast! But nevertheless, I can't back out now. I have to beat him!" Keisuke said as he sped off. "I don't want to disappoint the team and for another thing, I also don't want Yuki to be taken by some kids! Aniki will be heartbroken again" he shifted to third gear "I must keep my concentration well!!!" he downshifted then drifted smoothly pass the corner. "I'm nearing him little by little. That's good yet I still have to overtake him later. I wonder how?" he asked himself.

Meanwhile…

"yes, that's how to do it, Keisuke-san. Just try to keep up with me" Ryousuke said as he took a glance at his rear view mirror. "you'll have to be observant enough and try to overtake me when I make a mistake…" he then smiled inwardly, thinking to himself ' will I make a mistake now? I doubt it'

The two brothers raced with all that they've got. It was a test of their skills, and also a gauge, of how much one is different from the other. Keisuke still didn't attack his brother by overtaking him, probably because he really concentrated on keeping up with the brother that he has to deal with. Ryousuke, on the other hand, he really didn't mind being in front. Most of the time, he would look up at his mirror and observe his little brother.

'hmmm…I want to try overtaking now…' Keisuke thought. He peeked through the right side, but his brother just blocked him, whenever he attempted to.

"trying to overtake, are you, Keisuke-san?" Ryousuke said as he looked at his brother's driving. He was too absorbed that he didn't look in front, knowing that he was on a pretty long straight.

Keisuke, still trying to overtake, saw what lay some meters away. He focused his eyes then they widened in a split second. Decelerating until he came to a stop, he flashed his lights at his brother.

"shit! Aniki!" he said, still flashing his lights

"huh? Slowing down? Wh—" he looked up front and instinctively, responded to the happenings around him. He did a drift using the parking break, spun around and skidded, coming to a halt by the side of the road near the grass. He heaved a sigh then got out his car, staring at what lay before him.

"oh my god…"

**author's note:** quite a cliffie, ain't it? Hehehe!!! Read on!


	10. an unnexpected accident

Initial D- Let me protect you 

Chapter10– an unexpected accident

Ryousuke didn't move at all.

Before him lay a dark green Lancer Evolution VII, that had smashed its driver's side on the curve at the side of the mountain. The glass on the driver's side and the windshield had broken and scattered itself completely around the asphalt road.

"Aniki! Aniki!" Keisuke's voice sounded from behind him. His brother then stood by his side, as he got closer. "geez…"

"shit. This is bad" Ryousuke said as he walked closer to the wreck and inspected it. "damn!" he suddenly cursed. "there's still a person inside!" he turned to his brother. "Keisuke, call Nakazato and Shingo. They know where the nearest hospital is. Make it quick" he approached the door and jerked it open. After a struggle, he managed to open the door. Pulling out the person inside, he carried him towards his car where there weren't any more glass pieces.

"Hey! Hey!" he tried calling at the person, who he guessed was around 21, the same age as his brother, who had spiky black hair. Surveying the guy and noticing a bleeding arm and head, He quickly proceeded to his car and looked for some towels. Upon finding them, he then went back and bandaged the person's left arm to stop the bleeding.

"ugh…" the guy stirred as he lifted his head a bit and looked at Ryousuke with hazy, dark blue eyes. "What are you doing? What happened?" he focused his eyes. "Who are you?"

Ryousuke chuckled as he tied a knot on the towel and grabbed the other one, folding it into quarters in the process. "You crashed your car at the curve, met an accident, injured yourself, and now, I'm bandaging you." He placed the towel at the gash caused be a piece of broken glass. "Since your conscious now, hold this" he got the right hand and placed it atop the towel, to hold it in place. He then stood up and turned around.

At that exact instant, a black R32 and red EG6 came to a stop a few meters away from the FC. And behind them…

…was the whole team, lined up neatly.

Ryousuke groaned "and they HAD to bring the whole team…" he walked towards Nakazato and Shingo, who had just stepped out.

"What happened?" Nakazato said, seeing the wreck in front of them.

"someone crashed, and is pretty hurt. I was wondering if one of you guys could bring him a hospital now" he replied, glancing at both of the Night Kids

"I'll go" Shingo said. "where's the guy?"

"by my car" Ryousuke said, leading them. "I already did first aid at the guy, but he'll have to go the hospital, just to be safe"

"alright then"

Upon reaching the FC, they caught sight of the guy sitting down on the road, leaning against the car. The team had gathered by the FC, some looking out at the wreck, some, looking at the condition of the guy.

Two people were kneeling beside the guy, conducting what seemed like a medical check up for broken bones.

"do we have a medical team?" Ryousuke said, slightly amused as he was surprised by the skills of his two team members, who apparently were…

…Wataru and Yuki

"there seems to be no broken bones at his arms and legs…" Yuki said as her hand traveled to the towel on the guy's head

Wataru felt the guy's ribs "ribs are okay"

"this gash is pretty deep, look at it" Yuki told Wataru as she folded the towel in half

"yeah…so it seems…"

The guy looked at the two people who surrounded him then suddenly said "Yuki…?"

The aforementioned girl looked at the guy and then said "hey…aren't you…" she searched her head for the name "…Goneida Minou -san?"

"yup. That's right. I can't believe that's you, Yuki-chan" Minou said, smiling.

"okay, break it up. We have to bring him the hospital" Shingo suddenly said from behind.

"oh…okay" Wataru said, as he prodded Yuki at the back and stood up. "Let's go"

"ah…yes" Yuki nodded at him

Ryousuke and Nakazato went forward and helped the guy up to walk to Shingo's car. Yuki followed them and bid Minou good-bye.

As the red EG6 disappeared from their view, Ryousuke faced the two 'medics'

"so…"

Yuki and Wataru smiled at him.

"well…you see, I attended a medical camp for around 5 years when I was young" Wataru answered him.

"…and I worked as a nurse after I finished college. I took a major in nursing during my college years"

"…you did…?" Ryousuke said in a puzzled tone

"yes, I did"

The white comet suddenly laughed

"what's so amusing, Ryousuke?" Yuki asked, hands on her hips.

"oh nothing. It's just that, I never expected…no…never even _thought_ that I'd have two medics in my team. That's all."

"what's this? something like: presenting, the Kengai Racing Team's 'Medical Team'…" Yuki stood beside and pointed at Wataru "…composed of Akiyama Wataru…" she pointed at herself "…and Kazama Yuki. At your service." She bowed and Wataru seemed to follow suit.

The whole team erupted with laughter

"hehehe…you ought to have a armband that has a large red cross in the middle of it…" Sayuki said between laughs

"hey…that's an idea!" Ryousuke said

Yuki glared at him

"…or maybe not…" and he offered at smile at Yuki


	11. Mino and Minou

Initial D- Let me protect you 

Chapter11– Mino and Minou

The next morning

The door to the hospital room was slammed open.

Panting, a guy with dark brown hair that slightly covered eyes of the same shade, stood at the doorway. Beads of sweat ran across his face. He motioned towards the patient that lay on the bed in measured steps.

"Minou…are you alright?"

The guy called Minou faced him and nodded, smiling cheekily "yes, I am now, Minoko-san"

Minoko then leaned over and kissed him lightly (a/n: so sorry. It's YAOI! ) on the forehead. "That's good. I was so worried. The moment I heard, I immediately rushed here to see you"

Minou reached for his friend's hand and said, "who informed you? How'd you know"

"well…it seems to be that you were found by my enemy and his team. He was the one who called me up. Strange, I don't have a clue on how he knew…"

"…my car…it has a sticker, remember?"

Minoko slapped his forehead "oh! Yeah, right! I gave you one already"

Moments of silence passed by, then

"Mino-san, do you know where my car is?" Minou asked

"oh…uh…" he replied unsurely. He grabbed a seat and sat beside his friend that he treated more like a brother. "it's in the shop"

"how much damage did I take?"

"oh…uh…" he scratched his head hesitantly. He didn't want to say how the car was now.

The patient sat up and placed the hand of Minoko in between his own, caressing it softly and gently. "Please tell me. I just want to know."

"How could you think of your car when you were almost killed?!?" Minoko exploded at Minou. The man with spiky black hair was taken aback by the answer of his friend.

"I'm sorry, Minou-san for yelling at you…it's just that…I'm so worried at you" Minoko said sorrowfully as he looked down. Suddenly, a hand gripped his chin and held it up. A pair of charming dark blue eyes looked at him lovingly.

"it's okay. I just want to know. C'mon, whether it's really bad, I can take it"

Sighing, Minoko said, "okay. Uh…the driver's side had its paint scraped off. All the windows including the windshield and the back are broken, probably because of the impact. The headlights were broken and the front hood folded a little…"

"damn…" was Minou's reaction. He held a hand to his forehead, trying to imagine his car at the very moment.

"can it still be repaired?" Minou said, keeping all his hopes up.

A shake of Minoko's head shattered them all. He couldn't believe that his most beloved car is gone and with no chance of getting it back.

Minoko took pity for his friend. He sat beside him on his bed and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. He had this sudden feeling he needed to do it. He then whispered a few words to calm his friend's nerves.

When he had calmed down, he then asked, "what happened last night, that resulted to you sitting in this room?"

Pushing away from his friend, Minou then started remembering the unfortunate incident. "I was driving in the slopes of Myogi last night. I got to this pretty long straight so I decided to try _it. _It was really nice, but then, I didn't see that there was a pretty sharp turn to the left. Good thing I almost used up all of _it _"

"…so there wasn't much of an impact?"

"yes"

"well…I thank all the gods for keeping you from any other possible accidents. Good thing it didn't explode and you didn't burned"

"yeah…I know"

Minoko stood up and faced the window, looking out at it.

"Mino-san. I just remembered…"

"what is it?"

"Yuki. You remember her, right? I don't know if I was hallucinating but I saw he—"

"you weren't hallucinating, Minou. Kazama Yuki, also known as The blue ice from Tokyo, and she happens to be part of the opposing team…" Minoko stated, facing his friend once more.

"oh…so I wasn't seeing things…"

"…that guy who called me up. I think you saw him also 'cause he told me that he pulled you out and gave you first aid. Him, he's Takahashi Ryousuke and at present, he's courting Yuki…"

Minou's eyes widened "he is?" he said in utter disbelief

"yeah. He is"

"and you're running after her again?"

"yup"

"what's the point in all this?"

"to tell you the truth, I placed a bet. It was the only way Ryousuke would race us"

"YOU challenged them to a race?!?!?"

"uh…yeah…" Minoko said slowly

"why did you do that? Do you have ANY idea on their reputation?"

"what's there to know? C'mon! WE can beat them! It'll be a piece of cake!" Minoko said reassuringly

"geez Mino…I didn't think that you wouldn't know"

"know what? About the Kengai Racing team?"

"look, let me explain to you. The Kengai Racing Team is considered THE fastest racing team here in the Gunma Prefecture. Their team is composed of racers from hometowns around here, for example Akina, Akagi and Myogi. They have various cars, like the Mazda RX-7 FC and FD, R32, Sil-eighty…"

"but aren't those cars outdated already?"

"yes. If you think those are outdated, they even have a hatchi-roku. An 86… it's one of the lowest and cheapest ones you can get here in Japan… I think they have around two…"

"to sum it all up, they all have outdated cars. If so, we can definitely beat them!" Minoko said

"it doesn't stop there, Mino-san. You see, the potential of the team don't lie in the cars they drive, rather, in their skills. They're very different drivers from us. They drive on mountain passes, not on streets. If we have drag races on the street, they have normal car races on mountain passes"

"well…we just have to beat them to a bloody pulp with the power and money we've spent customizing our cars…"

"yeah…"

"anyway…I gotta go now…so sorry I couldn't stay really long…" Minoko said, glancing at his watch.

"oh…it's alright. Thanks for visiting me."

"of course I'd visit you…" Minoko replied, walking towards Minou once more. "you, get well soon, will ya? We need to train so we'll do that once you get out, okay?"

"yeah…sure. Can't wait to get on the road once more"

"so you get well…" he leaned closer to Minou and kissed him lightly on the lips. (a/n: SO YAOI! )

"see you…" Minoko whispered as he offered one last swift smile, turned around and left.


	12. identified

Initial D- Let me protect you 

Chapter12– identified

"so, you still wanna battle me?"

The younger one looked at his brother from the doorway "huh? Oh! That…"

"hmph…maybe next time, Keisuke-san. In the mean time, we have to beat this team who's a threat to the team" Ryousuke said as he looked out of his window. He suddenly heaved a sigh.

"Keisuke, would you mind sitting down? I have to tell you something" he then turned around and saw his brother sitting on his bed.

"so here it goes. Your race, it's coming sooner and sooner. Do you think you can win against them?"

"well…I'm not really 100 percent sure but…" he scratched his head "…I'll definitely try my very best to win. I don't want Yuki to be taken away from us…"

"good, good. Anyway, you've raced on Myogi a few times already. Perhaps what will motivate you to win is thinking that you got passed Fujiwara on that course…"

"yeah! You're right, Aniki! Or, I can think of that annoying guy…what's his name?" he thought hard "Dakada Minoko. Yeah, him. He's really annoying!"

"he is. But you aren't sure that he'll race you. To tell you the truth, I WANT to race him so bad that I seldom daydream on a race with him…"

"wow…really?"

"yeah. Sometimes, it gets to my nerve, just thinking about it."

"say, Aniki. Do you know what cars they drive? I am totally clueless on the look and sound of their cars…"

"actually, no. I haven't seen cars like theirs. I was supposed to search for their cars on the internet some time…"

"am I hearing correctly? Takahashi Ryousuke is unfamiliar with some imports?" Someone spoke from the hallway.

Silence broke throughout the second floor of the Takahashi residence. A shadow suddenly appeared then Yuki stepped out from behind the wall and stood by the doorway. She was wearing white shorts and an orange tee. Leaning by the doorframe, she smiled, saying, " Are their lanevos leaving you guys perplexed?"

Ryousuke's eyes widened upon hearing what she said. "lanevos?" he repeated

"yes. The cars that those brats' posses are the latest models of the Lancer Evolution series. They're called Evo VII and VIII." Yuki stated knowingly

"so their cars are the higher versions of what the Emperor team have"

"yes. They probably purchased them in America. The reason why I identified them was because I saw them before when I bought my SIR"

"oh, Yuki. Did I tell you? I just found out the Japanese name of your SIR. It's 'EK' if Shingo's car is an 'EG' , you have an 'EK'. I suddenly remembered." Ryousuke said out of the blue

"really? So that's why…" Keisuke commented on what Yuki just shared.

"yeah. Well, anyway. I'll go to sleep right now. Goodnight" she stood straight and smiled at them once more

"goodnight" the two men replied to her before she turned and left.

"so…it's a lanevo that we're gonna have to deal with, huh?" Keisuke told his brother.

"looks like it. Anyway. I have to research on this, Keisuke. Why don't you get some sleep? You look so exhausted that your body direly needs it"

"Aniki, you just said the magic words. I'm off to bed. Goodnight" he stood up and headed for his room.

"goodnight" Ryousuke replied as he turned to his computer to do some researching. Typing in the words 'Lancer Evolution speculations' on the search engine. He waited patiently for the results.

After the computer got all the search results, he looked at the page number: 20 pages with 25 sites per page.

"this is gonna be a long night" Ryousuke said as he clicked on the first one and read on.


End file.
